AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

What tell tale signs should I be looking out for to tell me that a chick has died before hatching?

I'm just getting accustomed to the new incubator, some eggs have hatched but only ones at later stages of development. Still having trouble getting new eggs to survive beyond the one week stage, practise makes perfect I suppose .

HI Fuzzy,

What is you temp like on your incubator?

Blood rings is a good early sign that the chick has died but once you have a solid mass (after about 25 days) it is near impossible to tell if it has died. I leave my eggs in for 24 days if there ae any that have not hatched. I find I can have some hatch 21 days right through to 23 days.

that should read 15 days

100 oF

humidity ranging between 60-80%, following manufacturers instructions to the letter.


There was one day the incubator cooled due to blackout, probably why I lost a few. I was more concerned about keeping my tropical fish warm and forgot about the incubator .

temp sounds good 37.7deg C or 99.9 deg F. Maybe the blackout did the damage. You up the humidity in the last 3 to 4 days to about 70 to 75% when you stop turning the eggs?

To be blunt about it, they don't hatch. I usually give it 2-3 days extra, but under normal circumstances the hatch comes off close together. There are always a few stragglers, but if they are days late, then they arent likely to do anything.

Oh and a blackout occured?? Well blast me. 24 hours of no heat will surely muck things up! I was guessing this was an ongoing issue, until I read the entire thread after I had posted my reponse. You gotta give that sort of information straight away, mate....

I wont delete the rest of this, though, as it may be useful for the future:

"However, if they are dying in the first week, several things come to mind.

First off is poor breeding. This has far more to do with hatching success than most imagine. A poorly selected stock, poorly bred and watered down for vigor is going to give sketchy results in the incubator. Look there first.

Second is oxygen levels in the chamber. The chick/embryo respires through the shell much as you do. In the early stages, this respiration is low grade.

But before the 2nd week has passed, oxygen use will jump dramatically as the heart begins beating and the chick regulates its own body temp. This is given away by the temp spike seen at days 12-14. If oxygen is not in sufficient solution, this will cause a premature death. Check ventilation ports closely.

I always widen them to about 10MM and ensure there's plenty of them. You can regulate airflow and both temps and Rh by using swinging top vent covers.

The other thing that strikes me about death in the first stage is handling. The tracery of veins that is the developing embry in the early stage is very vulnerable. Heavy-handed candling or other such jostling can upset, even damage the embryo. I always recommend you leave the thing alone until the 10th day, only turning the gently if you are not using an auto turner.

Temp and humidity are relatively easy to get right, but there is always the chance that you have a discrepancy - and don't know it. The thermometers that come with most incubators out of the box are garbage. I've had them explode in use!
They need replacement with a verified standard digi unit.
Also most air temp monitoring is inaccurate. Air temps are invariably higher than actual egg temps. This is why the water weasel/egg simulator has taken hold... it gives a true reading of egg temps. I highly recommend it, if you aren't using one already.

SO have a look at some of these things. Maybe you'll spot something that makes a difference. I hope so."

Great tips there. Thanks.

BTW: I think Vilfredo Pareto has an "l" in his name.

Profile changed. I had a typo moment, I guess.
Thanks for pointing it out!